Auxiliary air-inlet device for internal-combustion motors.



P. R. CAMPION.

vAUXILIARY AIR INLET DEVICE FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION MOTORS. APPLICATION FILED APR.2B. 1914.

1 ,mmg, Patented Apr. 322, 1919.

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WITNESSES.- ax M PATRICK CAMPION, OF SAN FCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

AUXILIARY AIR-INLET DEVICE FOR TNTERNAL-COIVIBUSTION MOTORS.

neonate,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 22, rate,

Application filed April 2a, 1914. Serial No. 834,957.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PATRICK R. CAMPION, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of San Francisco, State of California, (whose post-office address is 1741 La Salle Ave.,) have invented a new and useful Improvement-in Auxiliary Airllnlet Devices for Internal-Combustion Motors, of which the following is a specification.

Among the objects of this invention are:

To supplement the operation of carbureters, by introducing free air into the mixture delivered from the carbureter;

To automatically control the time, and the quantity of air admitted to the manifold in accordance with the duty imposed upon the motor;

To provide means for automatically in troducing auxiliary air into the intake manifolds of internal combustion motors,when the vacuum decreases and to decrease the air supply when the vacuum increases.

This inventionapplies more particularly to internal combustion motors, supplied with a fuel mixture through a manifold or intake pipe attached to a carbureter, wherein hydrocarbon fuels are mixed with air, to form combustible vapors or gases, to be ignited in the engine combustion chamber, for the generation of power.

In the conventional internal combustion motor, vacuum is created in the intake pipe Jtors for use in automobiles, tractors, hoists,

and marine work, wherein the speed is variable and the load inconstant, the Vacuum rises and falls so abruptly that fuel is wasted by an over rich mixture, or the 1110-, tor starved by a lean or imperfect propor-' tion of fuel and air, particularly under rapid acceleration.

The drawings illustrate an auxiliary air intake valve, constructed in accordance with this invention, in side elevation, broken a way in cross section to disclose the internal construction and arrangement of the parts,

and applied to the intake pipe above the carburetor.

In detail the construction illustrated in the drawing includes the outer shell 1, hav- 1ng the internal bore 2 therethrough, communicatlng with the passage 3 through the attaching nipple 4, screwed into the intake pipe X. The lower end of the bore is closed by the screw cap 5, internally threaded therein, and locked by the jam nut 6. The upper portion of the shell 1 is provided with the enlargement 7 having the annular tapered shoulder 8 thereon, through which the inclined holes 9, l0, and 11, are bored, communicating with the internal bore 2.

The upper end of the casing is inclosed within the screw cap 12, threaded on to the enlarged portion 7 and inclosing the upper end of the casing. The screw cap 12, has the annular inclined face 13, parallel with the surface 8, to and from which it is regulated by turning the cap 12 threaded on the enlargement 7, to regulatethe quantity of air flowing through the holes 9, 10, and 11, from the annular space 14:, between the inside of the cap and the up er extension 15' of the casing. This annular space 14: communicates with the upper space 16 in the cap, communicating with the petcock 17, controlling the atmospheric inlet to the space 16. The air admitted through the petcock passes through the filtering screen 18, laid across the castellated or notched top of the extension 15, the air passing directly into the mouth of the passage 14 and through the notches 19. It is the function of the screen to filter dust and obstructive matter admitted through the inlet 17.

The hollow piston 20'is introduced into the bore 2 of the casing within which it has a suction or sliding fit. This piston is tubular having the inner chamber 21, provided with'the perforation 22 near the head 23 which closes the top of the piston. The perforations 22 communicate with the annplar groove 24, sunken into the outer surface of the piston. In the normal position this groove 24 encompasses all the inlet holes 9, 10 and 11, delivering the air passing therethrough to the openings 22 in the piston; the air thus admitted passing downward and through the passage 3 to the intake X, the piston acting as a slide valve.

The piston 20 is supported b the coil spring 25, seated in the cap 5 at t e bottom, and encircling a stud formed centrally in the head 23 at the top. The rise of the piston is determined by the abutment of its upper edges with the threaded disk 26, in-

ternally threaded into the extension 15 of 5 the casing. The tension of the spring 25' is'regulated by screwing the cap 5 in or out of the casing, locking it in the desired position by the nut 6.

The vacuum created in the intake pipe by the suction of the motor, sucks the piston 20 downward against the tension of the spring 25, drawing free air through the holes 9, 10, and 11 and into the piston as described, from whence it is drawn into the 15 intake pipe. For example, presume that the intake pipe is supplying the manifold of a multi cylinder engine, with four or more cylinders, which create a more or less constant vacuum within the manifold.

At low engine speed the vacuum created is relatively high. At such speeds the motor is at the greatest disadvantage, being either slowed down by an access of load, orbeing throttled down, reducing. the momentum in the fly wheel, throwing extra labor on the crank shaft in overcoming the back pressure of the compression cycle; this condition calls for a rich slow burning mixture in the combustion chamber. Reference to the drawing will show, that this condition will suck the piston downward, until the head 27 progressively closes 'the holes 9, 10, and 11,

- whenflall of the admission to the manifold must pass through the carbureter X, which gives, a rich mixture, unadulterated by auxiliaryair through this device. As the engine speeds up under the increased opening of the throttle and the fly wheel gathers momentum the vacuum will drop, which 40 permits the expansion of thespring 25, cansing the piston to rise progressively open-.

ing the holes 11, 10, 9, admitting air to the intake pipe in quantities determined by the tension of the sprin 25, that is regulated according to the suctlon power of the motor. The maximum and minimum action of the piston 20 has been described, but it is ob vious.that the range of its operation will be determined by the behavior of the motor. In practice with the device properly regulated the piston 20 floats up and down, sensitive to the slightest-variation in vacuum, ad-- mitting just the right amount of air to maintain the most efiicient mixture.

56 To revent the piston hammering against the disk 26 when suddenly released which often happens as upon the rapid opening of a the throttle, the spring 28 is interposed between the disk 26 and the head 23, to supple- 60 ment the air cushioning action in the con- 1 fined space 29, which is vented through the small opening 30, and to control the gradual 'riseof the piston 20, as in a dash pot. The

spring 28 expands as the spring 25 contracts.

66 The spring 28 being of light tension does "of the piston stroke. This graduation of' the series causes the air to be cut off gradually and admitted gradually, at each end of the maximum piston stroke. The admis-- sion of air through these holes is regulated in volume by the screw cap 12. As the cap is screwed downward the plane 13 ap- 8o proaches the plane 8, cutting off the air supply. Backingoff the cap 12 has the reverse effect, giving a very' fine micrometric adjustment of the volume of air, according tothe capacity of the motor. This regulation can be made during the performance of the motor, and under various conditions, until the exact regulation is determined and fixed by the set screwBl, threaded in the cap 12 I and setting against the threads on thecnlargement 7. 4

Practice has demonstrated, that the use of this invention in conjunction with the various formsof carbureters, has permitted the substitution of low grade fuel, such as heavy distillates in highly refined automobile motors, heretofore operatable only with gaso lene and other such high grade hydrocarbons. This benefit is due to the increased combustion efficiency, following the introduction of free air as an oxidizing agent, at the proper period in the operation of the motor. A motor pulled down to low speed under a heavy load requires a slow burningmixture with the maximum of heat units, that will continue to burn and expand throughout the power stroke, or as much thereof as may be. The same motor, at high speed with the load under momentum will operate with greater economy on a lean mixture, created by the admixture of free air through this device.

With this device installed, sudden opening of the throttle, as in accelerating, does not throw a sudden pull on the carbureter, resulting in a gulp offuel; but releases the spring 25 opening an inlet through the holes 11, 10, or 9 or all of them, thus drawing in pure airinstead of an excess of fuel.

Having thus described this invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: g

1. A device of the character described comprising a casing provided-with an air inlet air passing from said annular air chamber through the suction passages, a tubular valve member mounted to reciprocate within said casing and having perforations in the wall thereof positioned to coincide with said suction-passages, said valve member having a shut-off portion contiguous to the perforations, said valve member communicating at one end with the interior of said casing, and'a spring for normally maintaining said valve member with its'perforations in register with said air passages, said valve being movable under suction in opposition to said spring to bring said shut-off portion opposite to said air passages.

2. A device of the character described comprising a casing provided with an air passage, an annular air chamber communicating therewith, suction passages communieating with said chamber, and an air outlet, means for controlling the volume of air passing from said annular air chamber through the suction passages, a tubular valvemember mounted to reciprocate within said casing and having perforations in the wall thereof positioned to. coincide with said suction passages, said valve member having a shut-off portion contiguous to the perforations, said valve member communicating at one end with the interior of said casing, a spring for normally' maintaining said valve member with itsperforations in register with said air passages, said valve member being movable under suctionin opposition to said spring to bring,said shut-off portion opposite to said air, passages, and means for variably controlling the air entering said annular chamben 3.,A device of the character described comprising a casing provided'with air passages extending through the Wall thereof and also having an air outlet near one end, a tubular valve member mounted to reciprocate within said casing and having perforations in the wall thereof and a shut-ofi' portion contiguous to the perforations, said valve member communicating at. one end with the interior of the casing, aspring for normally maintaining said valve member 7 with its perforations in register with said air passages, said valve member being movable -under suction in opposition to said spring to bring said shut-01f portion opposite to said air passages, a cap adjustably mounted upon said casing and having an air inlet, said cap having a portion shaped to provide an annular air chamberaround said a1r passages, and means for controlling the for normally maintaining said valve mem-v -ber with its perforations 1n register with said air passages, said valve member being movable under suction in opposition to said spring to bring said shut-off portion opposite to said passages, an adjustable stop for said valve, and means cooperating with said stop for preventing hammering of said valve member.

5. -A device of the character described comprising a tubular casing having a tapered annular surface thereon; a .cap telescoping over said casing and having a tapered surface parallel with said annular surface; holes extending through said casing from said tapered surface to the interior of the casing; a piston slidable in said casing, and having an annular groove corresponding with said holes; an adjustable cap closing th'e'bottom of said casing; a spring interposed between said cap and said piston, and normally holding said piston in the open position.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 20th day of April, 1914.

PATRICK n. oat/anon.

Witnesses:

BALDWIN VALE, A. J. HENRY, 

